The Hacker's Zodiac
by Ria D'Arcy
Summary: Tamika, better known as Kitsune the Hacker, starts her first year of college. Out of pure boredom she is attending classes, but when she meets a pair of interesting guys who throw her life out of whack - how will she get through it? Especially when Mr. Mystery turns out to be... Another summary inside. *I own no characters from HxH*
1. Profile

_A/N: Hey all! For those who are familiar with my stories I think this will come as quite a shock to you: This story was PLANNED… sort of. I wrote it all out before typing it. Literally. I have about 80 handwritten pages to prove it too. What is posted is the COMPLETE STORY. There will be no continuation. EVER. _

_This first chapter is where the A/N's will be along with well a type of profile for the characters. There will be no A/N's throughout the story, unlike usual. _

_Also for those who are familiar with my other works, you may have realized the mass update today. This is because I took a solid week (well, four days after finishing this story) to write as many chapters for all my works as I could at once. And this mass update is to welcome home my friend __**Razorblade Mistress**__. _

_Razor, this is what you get for ditching me for a week. Enjoy ^,^_

_Btw, the cover art belongs to my sister Aideen. Check out her facebook page by typing in:_

**_/ScarlettRoseFanArt_**

_after the URL (since it won't let me post it)._

_Oh and for all the Illumi fans out there please check out my website (remove the spaces):_

**_ illumizoldyck. weebly. com_**

* * *

**Synopsis:**

Tamika is a girl who has individual wealth, but nothing really to fill her time. Nothing but being the hacker known as Kitsune. After she graduates high school, Tamika takes a year off from school. Yet now she is finding herself restless. And restlessness does not a progressive hacker make. So she enrolls in the local college in a few courses she thought would hold her interest. In one class she meets a pair of males who seem to set her life in motion… And it spills into her online world too!

Join Kitsune as she deals with an unusual situation, and how her hacker friends may or may not be of help.

AU: College. No pairings, but IlluHisa is _implied_ (nothing more). Rated T, just in case. Genres include General/Friendship/Life/Mystery.

* * *

The Hacker's Zodiac Profiles:

**Kitsune**: [_Japanese:_ **Fox**] Real name: Tamika. Platinum blonde hair to the shoulders, with dyed blue bangs. Occasionally wears glasses. Female.

**Inu**: [_Japanese:_ **Dog**] Believed to be the eldest of the Hacker's Zodiac. Male. Nothing more is known.

**Uma**: [_Japanese:_ **Horse**] Female. Seems to be fairly close to **Kitsune**. Nothing more is known.

**Saru**: [_Japanese:_ **Monkey**] Believed to be the youngest of the Hacker's Zodiac. Attends high school. Male. Nothing more is known.

**Raion**: [_Japanese:_ **Lion**] College student. Believed to be French, or currently living in France. Male. Nothing more is known.

**Hitode**: [_Japanese:_ **Starfish**] Female. Seems to be fairly close to **Kitsune**. Sometimes speaks in Spanish, or French. Nothing more is known.

**Neko**: [_Japanese:_ **Cat**] Seems to have a past with **Inu** which causes occasional friction. Female. Nothing more is known.

**Hebi**: [_Japanese:_ **Snake**] Male.

**Aokakesu**: [_Japanese:_ **Blue Jay**] Male.

**Shika**: [_Japanese:_ **Deer**] Female.

**Kamakiri**: [_Japanese:_ **Mantis**] Male.

**Ga**: [_Japanese:_ **Moth**] Male.

**Same**: [_Japanese:_ **Shark**] Male.

* * *

Canon Character Profiles:

**Illumi Zoldyck**: College student attending part time. Male. Long black hair and wide black eyes. Constantly seen accompanied by **Hisoka**.

**Hisoka**: Last name unknown. Male. College student attending part time. Red hair spiked back, blue eyes. Constantly seen accompanied by **Illumi Zoldyck**.

**Milluki Zoldyck**: Male. Short black hair, black eyes. Has a work relationship with **Kitsune**. Does not attend any type of school.

* * *

_A/N: And that ends the profiles. They aren't much, but it's all I got. _

_**General Disclaimer: I do not own any of the canon characters. Though I do claim ownership of my awesome Hacker's Zodiac characters ^,^**_

_I hope you all enjoy reading the story as much as I did writing it and do not be afraid to review or pm me. Oh, and if I have gotten any of the animal names wrong in Japanese please correct me. I am a stickler for small details like that. _

_Also, I am not a computer techy. This story is based on a bunch of hackers, so most of those intense moments I have glossed over to try to make it __**sound**__ like I know what I'm talking about when I really don't. General apology goes here for the lameness of that. __**Gomenasai!**_

_And I think that covers about everything I had to say… There is a bonus chapter/epilogue-ish thing at the end, just because I could. Let me know what you think of it please, because I personally think it wraps up the story in a nice way but that could just be my brain thinking I haven't handwritten a story in __**faaaar**__ too long._


	2. Chapter 1

Have you ever experienced that feeling of déjà-vu, the one so strong you remember every detail and simultaneously remembering nothing?

It's an unexplainable feeling. Something I was currently feeling…

* * *

School. High school. You attend the same institution five days a week from the months of September to June. Then if you subtract all holidays you don't attend, that's another month you don't attend. And you find yourself realizing you only attend classes five days a week for nine months.

That gives you three months of nothing to do. No weekends filled with homework and projects, no parties to celebrate the end of the year, and no teachers to complain about.

So why am I talking about this? Those nine months of repetitive routines… Doing the same things day after day until you can go through the motions in your sleep. This same pattern continues for four years. In that time you have conversations, arguments, break ups and make ups. You fail tests and celebrate top scores.

Homecoming, prom, and graduation.

For four years you create irreplaceable memories with the people around you.

And once those four years are over you continue on to college.

I had never gone to college, never stepped foot onto the campus before the first day.

I was standing in the main entrance, looking both left and right down the hallways. The floors were carpeted, which was a huge difference from high school.

First time in a new building, I had never seen a floor layout, but I walked down the right wing hallway like I knew everything in the world.

My classroom was easy enough to find, the sign above the doorway helped a little too.

This was not where my déjà-vu began. My déjà-vu started the moment I turned the handle and pushed open the thick wooden door.

The typical classroom set up greeted my eyes; the large teacher's desk was placed to the center-right of the chalkboard, close to the door, while the student desks were aligned in rows. I counted nearly forty desks in the classroom, this would be a large class if everyone showed.

So far there only seemed to be a few early birds like me.

A girl was twirling her blonde hair as she sat on the desk of a dark haired, dark skinned man. Another boy was sitting in the very back playing on a gaming device – he seemed really into it.

The last person in the room was… I couldn't tell. They had long black hair and slim arms. Their head was propped up on one of their arms, the other hand was absentmindedly tapping the desk. They were sitting in the front desk against the far wall, ignoring everyone else around them.

I took an empty seat closer to the middle of the room, sliding my shoulder bag to the floor at the same time I placed my laptop on the on the desk. There was still another twenty minutes before the lecture would begin, in that time I could double check a few things…

"Illu-chan!" A male voice in the sudden silence brought my focus away from the screen. A boy my age with brilliant red hair skipped into the room and stopped next to 'it'.

I watched as he ran his fingers through the long hair. His girlfriend then? She seemed pretty enough. The red head brought a handful of raven locks up to his face and sniffed them.

_Okay, that's just whacked. Did he have a hair fetish or something?_

I shook my head and tried to refocus on what I had been doing. Unfortunately I could not tune out the red head's loud voice. It was more annoying than the girls who would spend all class gossiping about some guy or another.

"So Illu-chan. Isn't it fabulous that we have a class together? Ne~ Let me see your schedule. What else have you taken this semester?" I glanced up through my dyed blue bangs in time to see the girl slide over a single sheet of paper and the boy snatched it up, eager.

Before he could say anything the professor, a middle aged man in a suit and wearing glasses, came in and thumped his briefcase against his desk.

The class went silent. Red head took the open seat behind his girl and I clicked my laptop shut. I had been so absorbed in my work I hadn't registered the amount of people who had filed in. Nearly all the desks were full now, a couple in the back were the only ones to remain unoccupied.

"Good morning everyone and welcome to the first day of," here he paused to write something on the blackboard, "Introduction of Biological Anatomy." He scratched the piece of chalk under the scribbled letters, causing a screeching sound similar to what I had always believed a banshee to sound like. My classmates all flinched back, a few attempting to cover their eardrums.

The class proceeded for an hour, some of the facts were interesting but my mind was not staying focused on the front of the room. I continued to look at my desk where my notebook sat, closed.

My hand twitched to open it and continue on another of my projects. The only reason I was enrolled in a term was to keep up appearances. I had no need to be taught by people like Professor Husain. This class was being taken out of pure curiosity.

"Our next class will be on Wednesday at the same time. Good day everyone." He re-clasped his briefcase and walked out without another word to any of us. As the others filed out, conversing among their peers, I slowly put away my assortment of pens.

I stood up and my hip bumped the desk, sending the neatly arranged pens into scattered directions.

"Damn." I sighed and bent over to start picking them up. There was one more. Where did it - ?

My favourite pink pen was held out to me, inches from my face, and I looked up to see the red head's girl. She was leaning forward. I had not realized she was so tall. Her hair was falling over her shoulders, framing her porcelain face and emphasizing her large dark eyes. Even her outfit was cute; a black pair of jeans ripped stylishly at the knees and a white tank top that hugged her body…

I blinked as I realized it wasn't a _she_ at all. It was a really beautiful man.

"Is this not yours?" He asked in a voice that was anything _but_ feminine, holding out the pen once more.

"Oh, um, yeah. It is. Thanks." I mumbled as I reached up to grab it. "Really, thank you." I repeated as I placed the pen back into my pencil case and zipped it up, tossing it into my shoulder bag.

"Let's go Illu-chan!" The red head wrapped an arm around the other's waist and without another word they both left. I was now the last person here.

I had no other classes today so I was free to just go home. At least there I could work uninterrupted for hours.

* * *

The lock clicked behind me as I kicked off my shoes. The house was silent, as it always was. No one else lived here, it has been nearly a year since I last had a roommate. I preferred the solitude over a messy house guest anyways.

I trudged through the semi-dark living room, expertly weaving around the coffee table without even looking. I never stopped to turn on a light until I reached my study.

The wall opposite me was a floor to ceiling bookshelf, however it was not filled with popular novels or leisure reading. The entire thing was filled with notebooks, each written to bursting with information.

In front of that wall was my overly large desk, three monitors called that space home. This was my haven.

The soft whirling sounds they made as they powered on soothed my nerves. I was not overly fond of having to leave my house, and never would if I had any say. However, it seemed more and more my body was becoming restless. My work had slowly started to become affected, hence the college courses.

The year after high school graduation had showed me that even though I was not in classes to _learn_, I was in classes to keep me _focused_. Mandatory classes had given me the breaks and distractions necessary to keep my brain functioning.

**Beep… Beep… Please insert password…**

I rapidly typed in my password, not even glancing at my keyboard.

As my account loaded I pulled my laptop out and set it up on the little table I had ordered specifically for it.

Multitasking, a blessing and a curse some days.

I settled a wireless microphone headset comfortably on my head, brushing the rest of my bleached platinum blonde hair back. I looked around but couldn't locate my usual hair tie.

Sighing, I snatched up an elastic and caught my hair back into a ponytail.

"Hey Kit! Where have you been girl?" A slightly static-y voice came through my headset, I tinkered with the settings before answering my friend.

"I told you guys I was starting some courses. My online time will be sporadic now."

"Dude, Inu is going to flip when you tell him."

"I _did_ tell him Uma." I sighed at the girl as I typed away. I had told the whole group, twice, about my new college courses.

Apparently I would need to keep in mind that I had to repeat myself more often.

"So who's online?"

"Hebi logged off mentioning something about food. Shika said she was coming on later than usual, she's working with Saru to finish tonight." Uma paused and I could hear her clicking away at her own keyboard. I wasn't sure which project she was working on but I wasn't about to ask. Curious as I was I was not about to distract her. That was a big no-no in the group.

I disconnected our mics but left the chat on my laptop open, no one else seemed online at the moment.

_Can I get my own project done before everyone starts logging in?_

I opened the file, skimming what I had accomplished last night. I was surprised. I had not realized I was so far. A couple more hours of solid work and I could send the file off to Inu.

**Beep… Beep…**

_Guess not,_ I thought as I saw Raion's name flash on my laptop's screen.

"Kit-Kit! How was class?" I smiled at his stupid nickname for me, he was always so easy going.

"So-so. It being only the first day I'm hoping the lessons will pick up eventually. What about you Rai? Didn't you start today?"

He made a rude noise.

"What?" I laughed. "No good sights on campus?"

"None! I get that it's Autumn but come on!" He whined, and I smiled as he continued, "Could not one girl still be wearing a mini?"

"Grow up Raion!" Uma broke in, sounding offended.

"Ah Cherie, why must you ruin my fun?"

"It's not 'fun' it's disgusting. Why would you want to stare at a woman's _legs_ anyways?"

"Why do _you_ want to stare at a _guy's_ legs?"

I laughed. Hearing these two brought my mood back up every time. If I needed a laugh I could always count on them.

"Are they done arguing yet Kit?" The voice of a young boy sounded through my earpiece.

"Saru!" I called, gaining the attention of the other two. Saru was the youngest of us. I estimated he was around fifteen or sixteen.

Even though we all acted so familiar with one another the real fact was we only knew one another online. Real names were forbidden, we didn't even share our locations. The unwritten rule was respecting everyone's privacy. In a group of hackers a mutual rule like that was needed.

We could share anything we wanted; birthdays, hobbies, personal info. Anything but name, location and age.

There were thirteen of us, all with an animal code name. When the group was first created we decided to stick to the Japanese translation of our favourite animals.

In my case, Kitsune. Japanese for fox, and often shortened to Kit.

"Hey you three." Saru greeted.

**Beep… Beep…**

"Morning peeps!" Same's voice drawled, and we all greeted him back. We lived all over the world, but all spoke perfect English. That had been one of the requirements. Another was advanced understanding of programming, on any system.

I forget how we all started meeting, but over time the idea of creating a group started cropping up more and more.

So we had. And nowadays it was more than a simple group.

I opened our webpage and logged into my account. We were a sort of riffraffed company. Specializing in information gathering and computer engineering. We also created new programs and ran checks for high profile companies and even police headquarters.

For a new, small manned company we had made outstanding progress in under five years.

"You still awake on your end Kit?" Same's voice rang in my brain and I realized I had indeed drifted off for some time.

"Hmmm… Sorry guys, didn't mean too." I rubbed my eyes and checked the time. "Was I snoring?"

"Only a _lot_."

"When did you sign on Hitode?"

"Somewhere between the mumbling and the thunderous snore."

"Ugh. Why didn't you guys wake me up sooner?" I covered my face with my hands even though none of them could see my red face.

"We tried. We failed."

I head several different laughs and it finally hit me that everyone else had signed on.

"I hate you all _soo_ much right now. So can we _please_ move onto something not _me_ related?"

"But riling you up is our favourite past time Kit."

"Ao that's not funny. Seriously." I rolled my eyes at Aokakesu's teasing tone.

"With Sleeping Beauty finally awake again let's get down to business." Inu's tone cut off anything Ao was about to say. Inu was the oldest and the one to officially form the group, so he was the leader.

I wanted to say something nasty about his 'Sleeping Beauty' comment but wisely chose to just start working.

I could chew him out for it later.

* * *

_**Click… Click-click-click… Click… Cli-**_

"Go to bed Kitsune. You've been going at this for hours. Finish it later."

"Give me more time Inu. I'm almost done."

"You've already sent me two new files. Everyone else signed off an hour ago."

"But daddy~" I pretended to whine, being called daddy always seemed to get on his nerves quickly.

"Good night Kit." He signed off and I just laughed for a good minute. I stretched my back and kicked up my feet, leaning back to stare at my ceiling.

I knew Inu was just worrying about me. I had proven my passion since the beginning, resulting in malnutrition and even a stay overnight in the hospital when my stress level had built to the point where I had vomited everything back up.

On cue my stomach rumbled to remind me I had yet to eat today. _Something quick and then bed_, I told myself as I stiffly stood up from my chair.

Even the comfiest chairs make my butt go numb after seven hours or so of sitting.

I also had class tomorrow, so getting some sleep now was a good idea.

* * *

I walked into a new classroom. Today I had two classes to attend. The first was History of Art, it sounded slightly interesting but I wasn't holding high hopes.

My second class was a Basic English course. Also synonymous with Snore Fest. I could not wait for this day to be over.

* * *

I yawned as I waited for the bus to take me home. I had been right about that English class, and I had it three times a week.

A groan echoed up from my throat. College life was not as fun as I had thought it would be. I briefly contemplated dropping out, but then what would I do to fill my time?

**Beepbeep**

My phone vibrated in my pocket. An email? At this time? It was only noon. I unlocked my touchscreen and glanced at the sender just as the bus pulled up.

"Hey Gary!" I greeted as I took my customary spot in the back corner seat. I needed to transfer to another bus before I could make it home.

I settled back before remembering about the email.

_**Kitsune, **_

_**Info on XX**_

_**By midnight.**_

Of course the message was unsigned. It always was. Even the account remained untraceable, much to my constant irritation. There were very few people who could hide from my skills – this client was one – so why did he use me for information?

I had never received an answer.

* * *

I settled my headset as the monitors warmed up. No one was online yet so I got straight to researching what my client wanted.

**Beep… Beep…**

"Why are you on Hitode? Aren't you supposed to be sleeping?" Just because we couldn't hack each other's locations doesn't mean we haven't figured out general areas.

"Couldn't, but I'm surprised you're on already."

"Had nothing else to do." I shrugged my shoulders as I continued a little hacking. This was too easy, so my hackles were telling me to proceed with caution. One minor slip up and I could be toast – I would be burnt toast in a high security federal prison.

"Want to play around a little?" Hitode asked in a suggestive manner. Was this going where I think it was going?

"Who are you planning on hacking _now_?"

"Oh I dunno… What's the largest Chinese Triad right now?"

"Dear God Hito! Are you trying to get yourself killed?" Her answering laugh told me yes, she was.

"You know me Kit, I don't like getting in over my head. If I say I can hack a Chinese Triad, then by gully I can hack a CT."

"Then leave me out of it. I have my own work to do here."

"Ooh someone got an email from Mr. Mystery." I smiled at her teasing tone. Everyone in the group knew about my so called 'Mr. Mystery'. When I hadn't hacked through his firewalls I had asked for their help.

No one had gotten farther than me, not even with all thirteen of us working together.

"Yes I did. Now shoo-shoo so I can work."

**Beep… Beep…**

My laptop flashed with a smiley face. Hitode had a weird sense of humour. This new smiley face was wearing a sombrero, was sticking out a blue tongue and those glasses with springy eyes.

I minimized the image and turned back to my desktop. A few more minutes and my system should let me into the best information network in the world.

Nothing else had come through on my search so this was my last chance.

If I couldn't deliver on time my 'partnership' with 'Mr. Mystery' could be over. And so would my income… Okay, _half_ my income – our company paid just as well but it took more time.

"I'm in baby!" I twirled around in my chair in joy before returning to my main focus. "Now let us just see what is so secretive about –" My thoughts trailed off as my fingers moved across the keyboard, dancing a dangerous dance.

* * *

**Beepbeep**

The vibration of my phone had my hand snaking towards it as my other paused the movie I was watching.

_**Kitsune,**_

_**The money has been transferred.**_

Not a word of thanks, no congratulations or encouragement to keep working. That was how Mr. Mystery worked.

He ordered.

I obeyed.

I was compensated with huge sums of money.

I mean, _seriously_ huge sums of money.

I clicked over to check my new balance… I had been paid almost 500 000 jenny for this info. I think that has been the second highest payment to date.

I had received payment of two million jenny for information on the Zoldyck family. That had not been much, a few basic facts and a _little_ tidbit of personal bio on each of the five sons.

I, and Mr. Mystery, were probably the only ones outside of the Zoldyck family to know that information.

I would be killed if they ever discovered me. I had computer skills not combat skills. The Zoldyck Family is known to be professional assassins.

World renowned. Guaranteed to dispose of any one for a price.

The scariest people I would never want to meet.

"Hey Hito – you still there?"

"Oui mon frère." She said in a horrible French accent.

"You still wanna play?" I felt the smile spread over my lips as I cracked my knuckles followed by my neck.

"Always."

"Then, game on!"


	3. Chapter 2

"Why would you attempt something as reckless as hacking the CT?! Are you _asking_ to end your life?!" Inu's voice pierced my eardrums as he chewed us out for our little 'game'. Not just Hitode and I, Raion and Ga had joined about half way through.

Inu wasn't angry that we had screwed up, he was made because we succeeded. And that he hadn't been notified of our plans to run counter-measures in the slim chance they had decent hackers themselves.

Tuning back in I heard him sigh before logging off. Well that was unusual.

"Think he's getting used to our stunts?" Ga asked after a moment of shocked silence.

"Maybe." I heard the shrug in Raion's voice.

"I have to go. Can't be playing around all day."

"Go get them dogs Hito!" Ga whistled.

"Shouldn't I be saying that to _you_?"

"I work with bigger pussy then you do."

"God, you're so gross! I'm logging out to save my ears and maybe my brain."

Everyone said their goodbyes and I laid my headset on the desk, running my hands through my hair. I shook my head as I stood up. I needed a shower. Then I think it was about time I treated myself to dinner out on the town. I had gotten paid today after all.

* * *

The waiter motioned me to a table against the wall in the nearly packed restaurant. I smiled at him as I sat down, he left me with a menu saying he will be back to take my drink order.

Fancy restaurants like this weren't usually my thing but _hey_! Acting a little spoiled now and again was nice. It was also a good stress reliever, knowing I could be someone different for a night.

"What would you like to drink tonight?" The waiter was back with a notepad and pen ready to write.

"A regular coke will be fine."

"I will be right back." He walked away and I looked over the menu once more. I wasn't much of a steak and potatoes person, and I was getting a little tired of ordering seafood dishes every time I went out.

Hmmm… Lots of decisions but only one choice. I guess I would go with something I had not had in a while.

As I waited for the waiter to return I looked around the place. Majority of the customers seemed to be on dates, couples filled the tables with a family here and there. I seemed to be the only single diner tonight. Typical.

A lot of people were too ashamed of being seen alone in fancy places like this. Now go to any fast food joint and it is _crawling_ with single men and women.

"Your drink, and are you ready to order? Or do you need another minute to decide?"

"I'd like the lasagne with a Mediterranean salad." I handed the menu back after he wrote it down. He smiled and left me to look around again. There wasn't much else to see. The place was pretty but most restaurants are.

Feeling bored, I pulled out my cell phone and checked my email. Inu had sent me another project but nothing else. Guess work was slow at the moment, did that mean I had time to fool around with my own projects?

I could always ask him to give me a week or so off. It's not like I was desperate for money.

My phone beeped, letting me know someone had sent me a message.

_**Yo Kit-chan! ^^**_

_**I'm bored.**_

_**-Kamakiri**_

**Isn't there anyone online for you to bug?**

**-Kitsune**

_**Nope ^^**_

_**-Kamakiri**_

***sigh***

**-Kitsune**

_**Did you get the new project from Inu?**_

_**-Kamakiri**_

**Haven't looked at it yet. I'm out to dinner at the moment.**

**-Kitsune**

_**Am I interrupting a date? 0.0**_

_**-Kamakiri**_

**Nah, it's just me. Got another paycheck from Mr. M so I'm celebrating. ^^**

**-Kitsune**

_**Neat :) Message me when you're done so we can talk about the new project. I'm your partner this time. ^^**_

_**-Kamakiri**_

**Will do.**

**-Kitsune**

I slid my phone back into my purse and settled the napkin on my lap. The waiter had yet to arrive with my salad. I sipped my pop and settled into my thoughts.

Kamakiri said he was my partner this month, I wondered what Inu wanted us to do.

"Your salad miss. Parmesan cheese?" I shooed the waiter away and began to eat slowly.

It was good. I would have to come back again. I was taking a sip of my drink when I heard a somewhat familiar voice some tables over.

"Illu-chan!" My eyes sought out the owner of the voice and they landed on the red head from Monday's class. I don't think I ever learned his name.

I continued to watch as the long haired boy – though I still found it difficult to believe – wearing a suit approached the red head's table. I guess they were on a date or something.

"Here you are miss. Would you like another drink?"

"I'm fine, thank you." I smiled politely as he placed the plate of lasagne in front of me and took the empty salad bowl away.

I tried to avoid looking at the two men, who could not be all that much older than me, but failed constantly. Curiosity would kill the cat, or in my case, kill the fox.

I really wanted to know why they were here when most kids would be out at bars or something. Did they both come from good families? If that was it, they wouldn't be attending the local college. I shrugged as I took the final bite of my meal. Delicious and filling. Just as I wiped my mouth with the napkin my waiter reappeared. This guy was good.

"Can I have the check please?" I interjected before he could ask about the meal.

"Certainly miss."

I rhythmically tapped my nails against the wooden table until the bill arrived. I didn't spend longer than necessary paying. I was suddenly antsy to get home. Seeing those two…

It was unsettling when I couldn't become lost in cyberspace.

The second I walked out the door, head tilted down to my left, once again looking for my phone, I glanced back.

My eyes locked with the red head's and he smiled, lifting his hand in a girlish finger wave. I shuddered, walking away faster and pointedly keeping my attention forward.

* * *

"So how was dinner?" Kamakiri's voice asked the second after I logged on.

"It was good." I clicked open my email and scanned through everything Inu sent me. "So we're on maintenance this month huh? Figures."

"Haha, yeah, Inu has a sense of humour."

"Have you checked the site lately?" My eyes scanned across my monitors; the one on the right was email, the left was still on the desktop, and the center monitor was signed onto the main page of the website. I liked the name we had created: SUNSRISK HAHKG.

It took the first letter of all our code names combined into a kind of pun. We didn't have enough letters to correctly spell 'hacking' so we went as close as possible. That was the main reason. The second was we all knew it was stupid to name our company after something that is technically illegal.

"There's nothing to be done tonight." Kamakiri replied as I saw he too had logged in. "Inu said he would message us tomorrow about the changes to be done."

"That sounds like we'll be doing all the updates."

"Yeah, but that's Inu for ya." Kamakiri laughed as I smiled. We continued to talk until he said it was time for him to go. Then it was just me.

With nothing to do.

I scanned through all the videos I had but knew them all by heart, nothing was peeking my interest. I was about to give up and try to sleep when a message popped up on my left monitor.

_**Kitsune**_

**Who is this?**

**-Kitsune**

_**Are you alone?**_

What? Was someone playing a joke on me? 'Cause this wasn't funny.

**Who are you?**

**-Kitsune**

_**Answer. Are you alone?**_

**No.**

**-Kitsune**

_**Wrong move.**_

**BEEPBEEPBEEPBEEP**

Warnings and messages began popping up. Someone was hacking into my systems. I was not that easy.

**Let's dance.**

**-Kitsune**

My typing speed doubled as I kept up with his pace. He was good. And he was trying codes I never would have thought of. Impressed as I was, I was taking notes and still fighting back.

I was _not_ losing on my own system. Breaking away for a sum of seven seconds I typed a string of coding that began back-hacking his system.

**Beep… Beep…**

"Can't talk." I snapped, not even sure who had logged in. Another message flashed from my opponent.

_**You're good.**_

**So are you.**

**-Kitsune**

"Kit, what are you doing?"

"Can't. Talk." I growled, eyes moving constantly from one screen to another. This guy was getting faster, or was it me who was getting slower?

"Kitsune!"

"What?!" I broke my eyes away long enough to see that the one talking to me was Inu. "I'm _busy_ Inu."

"Are you getting hacked too?" I took a second to process his words.

"Wait – _too_? You're getting hacked?"

"Yeah, and this guy is good."

"Double team?"

"How long will it take you to sync the servers?"

"Keep him off my tail for sixty seconds."

"Done."

Trusting my back to him I focused on this string of code that would sync our servers together so instead of the hacker trying to get to us individually he would only be able to get through us one at a time, which also gave us more time to build locks, traps, and back hacks.

"Kit."

"Sync's up."

_**Nice play. Goodbye.**_

Every alert in my system suddenly stopped. I ran a detailed check through everything. He had never made it into my files… So why had he stopped?

"He's gone."

"Here too. What do you think that was all about Inu?" I sat back, steepling my fingers as my breathing slowed.

"No idea. Did he get anything from you?"

"Nothing. I'm running a deeper search no but everything seems normal. You?"

"Same. Let me know as soon as you find anything wrong."

"Will do." I signed off and went to the kitchen, letting the computer do its thing. Did I still have chips in the house? God I hoped so. I was craving something salty right now.

Who had that hacker been?

What had they wanted?

They had known who I was. They had left no signature. The messages were unsigned.

Mr. Mystery?


	4. Chapter 3

I skipped my morning English class in favour of catching up on sleep. I had stayed up in case my scan had picked up something. But there was nothing.

It was like the hacker had been purposely testing my skill. And Inu's.

How would I have fared if he had solely focused on me? I would have been crushed in no time flat. Was there really someone so good out there? I was positive it had been coming from a single source. Was there a chance I could be wrong?

I paused in writing a new code and turned to a fresh page. I quickly double checked my math from this morning. With so many unknown variables it was hard but I was at least 90% positive it had been a single person as opposed to a team.

I returned to my original page and finished the coding. It had been one of the strings the hacker had used, and I was itching to try it out myself. Could it be improved in some way?

On the line beneath it I copied the code with slight modifications. Followed by another and another until I had nearly a dozen separate codes and no way to test them out.

If only I had kept my laptop on. I could be doing something more important than pretending to listen to the professor's lecture on all two hundred and six bones in the human body.

I dropped my chin into the cup of my hand and looked to the front of the room where Professor Husain was pacing. From the corner of my left eye I couldn't help but notice the red head and his 'Illu-chan'. The red head was playing with the raven's locks again. He did this every day. I have even caught him braiding it earlier in the class.

Out of the three times I had seen them, red head always found some reason to touch them. Were they that soft or only a hair fetish like I first thought?

"Dismissed." Professor Husain's curt dismissal brought me out of my thoughts. With glee I packed up my things, but my eagerness led to clumsiness. My hip knocked the desk and my pens scattered across the floor.

"Damn." As I bent down my favourite pink pen was held out to me.

"Thanks." I mumbled, quickly taking the pen and placing it back into my pencil case.

"You're welcome." He spoke so politely. Maybe he was from a good family…

"Illu-chan let's go~!" The red head called from the doorway, beckoning with one hand.

"Coming Hisoka."

I looked over the desks as the two of them left the room. So his name was Hisoka? I guess a weird name suited a weird guy.

A single beep from my phone drew my attention back to the pens across the floor.

_**Inu wants to talk. Now.**_

_**-Neko**_

One of my eyebrows raised so high it was practically lost in my hairline. Neko was being used as a messenger cat now? And for Inu of all people?

Just because we were in the same group, did _not_ translate to us all liking one another. Inu and Neko seemed to have a bit of history – bad blood.

So what was so important that Neko would contact me in his steed?

I swiftly packed up everything and used my phone to log into the online chat. Plugging in my headphones I waited for Inu to come online and walked to the bus stop.

**Beep… Beep…**

"What's wrong Inu?"

"Everything." He instantly responded, like he had anticipated the question. "First did you detect anything wrong in your system?"

"Nothing – triple checked and even recoded a few segments to see if he had left a trace. My system's clean."

"Second, how long had he been hacking you before I called?" His clipped tone was beginning to put me on edge.

"Not long. Three minutes forty-one seconds." I waved to Gary the bus driver as I stepped on, still focusing on Inu. Something was really wrong.

"Damn."

"Why? Have you found something?"

"He placed a bug in my system." My jaw dropped open. Inu's security was at least double mine with back up firewalls and so many false ends that I couldn't even get through level one.

"When?"

"I'm thinking when he distracted me and started attacking you. He was fast. Didn't even know the bug was there until I did a full system diagnostic."

"If that's true… I better do another check, in case he planted something when our servers were synced." I bit down on my thumbnail as I thought of what he could have done to my system. If he had messed with _anything_ I was going to screw his coding so badly he'll be back in the days when home computers didn't even exist.

"That's why I wanted to talk to you. I'm warning everybody else tonight too but I think you're the only other one he had hacked at the same time."

"Thanks Inu." I whispered. My system meant a lot to me and he knew that. If anybody messed with my baby…

"Talk to me after you check your system. Take all the time you need. Chow." Inu was about to log off so I hurriedly said what I needed to say.

"Thank you. Really Inu, thanks."

"Any time."

I logged out of the account and looked out the bus window. The sunny sky seemed to be mocking my gloomy mood.

A full system check… Every programming, every coding, even y back up files… Everything needed to be scanned. That would take hours… Actually it would probably take all night. Looks like another all-nighter. I better pick up a bit of junk food, I will be needing all the sugar I can get.

* * *

"You still awake there Kit?" I blinked and rubbed my eyes. Looking at all the screens I noticed Ga and Hebi were still online, the scan was cresting the halfway mark, and the clock read,

"It's only one a.m!?"

"Tone it _down_ shrieky."

"Sorry Hebi." I raked my fingers through my hair and reopened my email browser.

"How's the scan?" Ga asked and I groaned.

"Hahaha, still going to be at it for a while?"

"You have no idea."

"Since you've got the time, check out this link."

I cocked my head to the right as I waited for said link to pop up.

"What's it too?" Hebi asked.

"Just check it out you two. You'll love it. It is _the best_ prank you can pull." It flashed across the screen and I clicked on it wondering what it could be…

I laughed as the teacher continued to talk, oblivious to what was actually occurring on the screen behind him.

"Didn't I tell you?" Ga smugly asked as I closed down the link.

"I admit you found a funny video, and it killed some time. What did you think Hebi? Hebi?"

"He signed out Kit."

"Oh." Too bad, Hebi and I never get much chance to talk anymore.

"Sorry to say but I have to as well. I have things to do."

"Alright. Maybe someone else will sign on later to help keep me awake." I sighed.

"Now, now little vixen, no guilt tripping me here." He chided and I just smiled.

"Later."

"Later."

Kicking my legs up I wondered what I could do to pass the time. I did have those new codes to test, but I wasn't sure how they would affect my system. I didn't want to chance an internal conflict while looking for a specific problem.

It couldn't hurt to catch a little sleep now could it? I was right here at the keyboard… If anything…

I yawned as I rubbed at my eyes.

… went off I would hear it. I was sure I would.

So I closed my eyes and relaxed my shoulders. Sleeping in my chair was as natural as sleeping in a bed was to most people.

* * *

**Scan Complete!**

I awoke to that flashing in a message box on my screen. So nothing had been found. Releasing my breath I sent Inu a quick email to let him know.

I stretched out my back and cracked my neck. Nothing had seemed to be wrong. So why had they tried to hack my system? Was it simply a distraction to get to Inu? And if that was the case… what was Inu hiding?

* * *

"Everyone will be working in groups of _three_ for this project. I don't care who you work with. By the end of the month you need to replicate a complete human skeleton with a report on which bones are the most often fractured, broken, and found intact on archeological digs." As the professor finished speaking everyone broke off into groups and began chatting excitedly.

I was never one to socialize in public so I figured if I sat alone long enough the last group would find me. Unless the prof's math was off, though working alone had _many_ perks.

So I patiently sat in my desk and tapped my pen, watching as group after group began to leave. I was just thinking there was no one left when a large hand slammed down on my notebook.

"Wha-"

"Do you still need a group?" The red head's voice cut me off. I looked up and saw his blue eyes nearly _glaring_ back at me.

Talking? Not my specialty.

Talking under pressure?

"Um, wh… what? Group? Y-yes." Embarrassing. I felt my cheeks redden and glanced down to my hands, which were ever so slightly shaking.

"Hisoka." I looked up as his raven haired friend came over and laid a hand on his shoulder. He turned to me as Hisoka shrugged and walked away.

"We still need a third person and you seem to be without a group. Would you like to join ours? It will be mutually beneficial." His calm tone soothed my jitters and I even managed a small smile as I answered.

"Sure. Joining sounds… good." I stood up and stuck out my hand. "I'm Tamika, though my friends call me Kit."

"Illumi." He shook my hand as Hisoka reappeared. He took my hand from Illumi's grip and kissed the back.

"And _I'm _Hisoka."

I pulled my hand back as politely as I could. He just smiled as he released it and licked his lips. Illumi's face did not change expression even once. Silence engulfed us, making me fidget. To distract myself I began packing everything up.

The two unwavering stares put me back on edge so much some pens slipped through my fingers to bounce off the floor.

"Damn." I muttered.

"Allow me." Illumi bent down and his long fingers gracefully picked up all my writing instruments.

"Thanks." I swung my bag onto my shoulder and grabbed my laptop bag in my other hand. "So how do you want to do this?"

"We should discuss how we can create a model skeleton."

"That's so drawl Illu-chan. Why _make_ a skeleton when we can easily _acquire _one?" Hisoka's laugh raised the hair on the back of my neck and I prayed he was joking. He was making a really _sick_ joke – wasn't he?

"Um, excuse me?" My voice squeaked as I tried to move onto a different tactic. "I could make a computer generated model?" Both of them raised their eyebrows. Maybe I didn't look as geeky as I thought…

"You're good with computers?"

"It's a hobby." I shrugged, trying to play it off.

"Can you show us some of your work?" Illumi turned to face me with his large black eyes as we walked down the hallway.

I rubbed the back of my neck uncomfortably.

"My works… All of my works are on my home system."

"Then let's go to Tamika-chan's house." Hisoka threw his arm around my shoulders and the other around Illumi's and steered us towards the parking lot.

"I-I could just bring a flash file tomorrow, you k-know for you guys to s-see." I stammered, panicking.

"Nope! I want to see Tamika-chan's place! Illu-chan's is too noisy."

"And yours is filthy." Illumi commented as he slid into the shotgun seat of a red Mercedes-Benz. Hisoka opened the backseat and I was out of time to worm out of it.

Without putting up resistance I sat behind Illumi and gave Hisoka the directions to my house, my stomach churning the entire trip.

* * *

My keys jangled as I turned the handle of my front door and let Illumi and Hisoka in. I automatically started forward, leaving the lights off. I was nearly in the center of the room before I remembered about them.

"Sorry, just let me grab the lights." I turned around and smacked into a chest. "Oomph."

"Haha. We're fine. Where were you taking us?" Hisoka's voice was even _more _disturbing in the dark.

"But it's so dark in here and you could trip –"

"Over the coffee table two feet in front of us?"

"How did you –"

"Know?" He finished for me again followed by another round of laughter. "Illu-chan and I have superb night vision."

"Um, okay." I chewed my lower lip as I continued to the study. I looked back more than once to see if they were still behind me. Neither made a sound as they walked.

In my study I stood in the doorway as they both explored the room. Illumi seemed interested in all my notebooks as Hisoka sniffed around my desk. _Literally sniffed!_

"Shoo! I don't want you to start licking my monitors!" I waved him away and settled in.

"Did you write all of this?" I heard Illumi flipping through one of the notebooks and made a sound of affirmation.

"Here. This is a game I made. Try it out while I go get drinks. Is soda okay?" I pushed away from my desk and left the guys to view the game. Would they like it?

The game was one we had uploaded onto our site to show some of our capabilities. Maybe not the most _professional _approach but it showed a lot of skill.

* * *

I rummaged in the fridge for the sodas when my phone vibrated on the counter. My head popped above the door to see the illuminated screen.

**Kitsune, **

**Info on XX**

**By midnight.**

I tossed my phone back down and carried the cans down the hallway. I would have to deal with that later.

I used my back to push open the door.

"Here! I brought the so-" I stopped as I saw Hisoka absorbed into the game, face practically glued against the screen. Illumi was even leaning over his shoulder, hair falling into his face. "-das?"

Well this was interesting… I hadn't pegged these guys as gamers. Hisoka maybe, but Illumi? He seemed too refined to waste time on the net.

"Hey!" I called, setting the cans down on the side table. "Yoo-hoo?"

No response. This generally wouldn't bug me except that they had taken over my computer. _No one_ takes over my computer. Ever.

I walked behind the two males, holding my hands behind my back. The movement on the screen caught my eye and they widened in shock. I leaned over Hisoka's other shoulder, steading myself on his frame.

"How did you get so _far_?!" I had only been gone a few minutes and they were already halfway through the game.

A game that had taken the other members _an hour_ to reach this point!

"You had a saved point." Hisoka's eyes never strayed from the monitor as my hand came up to slap myself in the face. I had forgotten about that.

"But this is amazing." It was just shy of ten minutes later when Hisoka closed down the game and smirked up at me. He looked a little _too_ comfortable in my chair. "You really made that?"

"I get bored from time to time."

"How long did it take you to make it?" Illumi asked.

"Um, that game took a total of…" I did quick math in my head to convert hours into days. "… 415 days."

A low whistle came from Hisoka's lips, Illumi remained quiet.

"How long would it take you to make a digital model?"

"Something like that?" I tapped my chin. There was nothing pressing, only a few updates to make really. I shrugged. "Give me a week."

"You handle that, Illu-chan and I will handle the report."

"Are you sure? Won't that be the hardest part?" Computers were easy, research was hard. That didn't seem fair.

"Tamika-chan, Tamika-chan." He wagged his index finger in a tsk, tsk gesture. "The report will be easy for the two of us."

"Are your parents archeologists?"

"In a sense." Hisoka laughed and Illumi raised a hand to hide a smile.

"Well, now that everything is settled. Do you two mind leaving? I have other work to do tonight."

They didn't say a word, just walked out the door. I followed a few steps behind, but by the time I was in the hallway they were gone.

No farewell.

No sound.

Too creepy.

Maybe I should start looking for that info for Mr. Mystery…


	5. Chapter 4

"And _I'm_ saying the new program is fine." Neko huffed.

"What did I just log in to?" I asked.

"Inu and Neko are going at it again." Uma explained.

"Yeah I can _hear_ that. How long have they been at it?"

"Just for the last hour." Aokakesu.

"You've only _been_ on for the last hour. They've been going at it longer than that." Ga sighed.

"I think," Shika broke it, "they're nearing three hours of bickering."

"You been listening that long to them Shika?" Kamakiri sounded astounded.

"Unfortunately. And they won't listen to a word I say."

"Oi! You two bickering hens! Do this on your own time!"

"Christ Same!" I pulled the headset from my ears the moment he started shouting and I could still clearly understand him.

"Give us some warning man. Nearly blew out my eardrums." Raion complained.

"Sorry everyone, but it worked!" We all listened for a moment to discover he was right, Neko and Inu had fallen silent.

"Boo-yah!" Hebi and Saru shouted in unison, the rest of us laughed.

"Why so quiet Inu?" Shika taunted. "You were pretty vocal a minute ago."

"Maybe the cat's got his tongue." I smirked.

"Entertaining… Not." Inu's dry voice came through the mic and only encouraged us more. The laughter and jibs went on until we noticed Neko signing off.

The awkward silence which followed was not something we were used to among the group.

"Good job guys. Smoothly played." Inu signed off next.

"Does anybody else feel really crappy right now?" Saru's sad tone echoed in my ears and I had to agree. We had only been poking fun but I guess we had all forgotten about their feelings.

"We will have to apologize to Neko –"

"And Inu."

"– the next time they sign on." Aokakesu stated. Another round of assent from everyone was heard.

"… I'm going to go guys. Later." I signed off before farewells could be made. My mood was totally crashing.

I tossed the headset against my keyboard and shut everything down. I no longer felt like staying awake. I would start the design project tomorrow.

Sleep claimed my brain just as I remembered I had forgotten to send the file to Mr. Mystery.

* * *

**Beepbeep… Beepbeep… Beepbeep…**

What was that? My groggy brain registered an unpleasant sound and my hand fumbled about trying to locate it.

**Beepbeep…**

My hand finally landed on my phone that sat on the nightstand and I picked it up as it vibrated once more.

_**Where is the information?**_

**What info?**

**-Kitsune**

I groggily sent back, rolling over to snuggle into my pillow. Today was the only day of the week that I didn't have classes until after lunch. That meant I could sleep in…

**Beepbeep… Beepbeep…**

… but apparently someone didn't get that memo. I glanced at my screen with one eye.

_**Kitsune**_

**What?**

**-Kitsune**

_**I requested info on XX by midnight last night. Where is it?**_

I arched my eyebrow as my other eye opened. Was he _demanding_ something? And so early in the morning. I don't _think_ so buster.

**Sleeping.**

**-Kitsune**

_**Where is it?**_

**Bite me.**

**-Kitsune**

_**I prefer hacking to biting.**_

**Gross *vomit***

**-Kitsune**

_**I will find the file on your computer myself.**_

**My computer's protected $$hole**

**-Kitsune**

_**Not for long.**_

Wh-

**BEEPBEEPBEEPBEEP**

I was out of bed and running to my study in the XL shirt I liked to wear to bed. I crashed through the study door and the alert became clearer.

How had he managed to get in so fast? There were nearly triple the firewalls in play when my computer was off.

"That sneaky sonovabitch." I cursed as I instantly began to back hack him. There was no way I could protect my system and back hack at the same time. He was already in the system anyways so it was a waste of time. If I was lucky he would only go after that one file.

_**It won't work.**_

**Wanna bet?**

**-Kitsune**

_**My system has better protection than yours.**_

**Says who?**

**-Kitsune**

_**Says me.**_

His server suddenly began throwing me out. As much as I tried it was successfully beginning to lock me out too. One option left.

I typed one of the modified strings and prayed it would work the way I wanted it too.

I peeked from one eye, not sure when they had closed, as the alerts on my system ceased. I opened the other eye as a new message from my hacker appeared.

_**I'm impressed.**_

_**-M**_

**Serves you right.**

**-Kitsune**

_**You're good for a kid.**_

_**-M**_

**I ain't no kid you brat.**

**-Kitsune**

_**I am not a brat!**_

_**-M**_

**You act like one… brat :P**

**-Kitsune**

_**Try blocking this kid.**_

_**-M**_

**Let the second waltz begin.**

**-Kitsune**

For the rest of the morning I played back and forth with M. He was good, like genius level good. I swore he was the same guy from before, but I was beginning to wonder if M was Mr. Mystery. He had first contacted me asking for the same info as Mr. Mystery.

An online impersonator didn't seem to likely in this case.

**I have to go to class now. Promise not to hack me while I'm gone? ^^**

**-Kitsune**

_**Fine.**_

_**-M**_

I laughed as I walked back to my bedroom. This M person was actually very cool. I was already learning several new tricks from him, whether he was meaning to teach me or not.

As I brushed back my hair my mind thought of all the modifications I could make to the codes. What would work? What wouldn't? Was it worth improving?

I nimbly braided my hair, grabbed everything I needed and locked the door.

The only reason why I wasn't simply ditching this class was because it was the only class I shared with Illumi and Hisoka.

Illumi was quiet but kinda interesting and Hisoka was that creepy uncle every family has. I was hoping that with prolonged exposure the creepiness would eventually fade into the background.


	6. Chapter 5

I saw Illumi standing outside of the classroom instead of already in the seat. I reached up to wave when I noticed he was actually on the phone. I didn't want to interrupt, so I simply slipped past him, but I was still able to hear a good portion on his side of the conversation.

"– you not able to get more information?"

"…"

"What about your information friend? Did you not ask for their assistance?"

"…"

"Ah, so that was all they had been able to find as well. Keep searching Millu. There must be more information on XX somewhere." Illumi snapped his phone shut and took his seat.

I, meanwhile, was nearly a living statue in my own seat. Illumi had just mentioned the place Mr. Mystery had wanted info on. He had also said 'Millu' that was an _m_ name.

Oh my god! Did Illumi know Mr. Mystery!? How?

My fingers gripped the edge of the desk until they turned white. Risking a glance, I saw Illumi doing nothing out of the ordinary. He was sitting in his desk staring at nothing.

Could I ask Illumi? What would I say? There was no way to confirm if this 'Millu' was Mr. Mystery a.k.a. M. This could all be a coincidence couldn't it?

"Good morning Illu-chan!" I watched with still shock-widened eyes as Hisoka skipped into the room. He stopped before he reached his desk, turned to me and blew me a kiss. "Good morning Tamika-chan."

"Hi." I automatically replied, my brain was functioning on autopilot.

If you asked me what we had talked about, I couldn't tell you.

If you asked how many people were there today, I couldn't tell you.

If you asked how many times Hisoka touched Illumi's hair – 64 times.

If you asked how many times Illumi told Hisoka not to touch his hair – 41 times.

My attention had been solely focused on the two of them. I wanted to ask. Was Millu, M, and Mr. Mystery all the same person? Someone whom Illumi seemed to know?

Robotically I packed everything away and simply left once class was finished. There was no way I could ask him directly. However, he seemed quite familiar with this Millu person… So let's start by snooping into his school file shall we?

* * *

As soon as I turned on my desktop a message from M appeared.

_**Shall we play again?**_

_**-M**_

**Can't.**

**-Kitsune**

_**Why?**_

_**-M**_

**I need to work. Don't distract me.**

**-Kitsune**

_**When will you be finished work?**_

_**-M**_

**Depends on whether you keep talking to me or not.**

**-Kitsune**

_**Alright, alright. Another day.**_

_**-M**_

I sighed in relief. Hopefully M would keep off my back, I did _not_ want to try hacking the school while he was trying to hack _me_.

Glancing at the chat I saw Hitode was on. Awesomeness!

"Hey Hito – you bored?"

"Not for long by the sound of it. What you got in mind Kit?" I heard her chuckle and pictured her cracking her knuckled like I was.

"I need to hack my school's secured server. Wanna help?"

"Game on!"

Not even thirty minutes later I was browsing through Illumi's personnel file the college kept. And it was getting strange.

"You seeing what I'm seeing Hito?"

"If that's a whole lot of nadda, sí."

"How could this be? Did you pull that file on Hisoka too?"

'It's showing the same thing Kit. It's only listing his name and class schedule. Nothing more." I tilted my chair back and laced my fingers behind my neck.

"Weird." Muttering to myself I tried to think of what this could mean. I came up with nothing.

"Hey Kit?"

"Yeah?"

"Why don't you ask Mr. Mystery? I'm sure he could help."

"Maybe…" He probably _could_ but would he do it for free? No. And that was the issue – what would he ask for in payment?

Somehow, I didn't think he would be asking for money.

"The other option is to ask everyone else for their help." Hitode broke into my thoughts.

"And what? Ask them to look into _every_ Illumi on the planet?" I sneered. "We don't even know his _surname_. How do you expect them to know which is the right one?"

"Sorry." Hitode's voice sounded choked and my quilt level multiplied.

"No, _I'm_ sorry Hito. I took my frustration out on you. It's just… I'm not used to hitting such a thick wall at full force."

"Hehe. I don't think any of us are. I'm going to go get something to eat, be on later."

"Bye." Raking my fingers through my hair I continued to feel bad. There was no way I could work efficiently in this state so I sent a message to M, curious if he was still online.

_**Done with work already?**_

_**-M**_

**Hit a brick wall.**

**-Kitsune**

_**Haha. Skills not as par as you had believed?**_

_**-M**_

***snort* Hardly. There was no info to find it seemed.**

**-Kitsune**

_**On what?**_

_**-M**_

**You offering to help?**

**-Kitsune**

_**If it sounds interesting, I think I can spare you my services.**_

_**-M**_

**Idk… I don't like making deals where I don't know the price.**

**-Kitsune**

_**Hahaha… How about this then?**_

_**-M**_

**I'm listening.**

**-Kitsune**

_**You tell me what you're looking for and in exchange you get info on XX free of charge.**_

_**-M**_

**And what if you don't know anything about what I want?**

**-Kitsune**

_**I'll pay you double.**_

_**-M**_

The offer was enticing, and pretty low risk. The only question left was…

**Is this a fair deal?**

**-Kitsune**

_**If you want your info as much as I think you do.**_

_**-M**_

Damn bastard was playing me. He was acting all cocky, thinking I would jump at this. And god dammit… I would have to bite if I wanted to get to the bottom of this.

**All I know is a name.**

**-Kitsune**

_**So we have a deal?**_

_**-M**_

**You deliver first. Then I decide what happens next.**

**-Kitsune**

_**What's the name?**_

_**-M**_

**You going to tell me /everything/?**

**-Kitsune**

_**Fine, fine. Now tell me.**_

_**-M**_

**Illumi**

**-Kitsune**

_**Surname?**_

_**-M**_

**Don't know.**

**-Kitsune**

_**Male. Long black hair w/ black eyes. Looks in his twenties. Most likely seen with a red haired male the same age.**_

_**-M**_

**Those weren't questions.**

**-Kitsune**

_**That's Aniki.**_

_**-M**_

It's a good thing I was sitting down because that was not the answer I was expecting. Illumi had a little brother? A brother who could hack better than me…

"_What about your information friend?"_

**Millu?**

**-Kitsune**

He logged off without answering. That was answer enough. So Illumi had a brother named Millu. Millu was a hacker who gave information to Illumi. Info that was highly secretive.

Illumi…

Millu…

Now that I was thinking about it, the names were sounding familiar. I had come across them hadn't I? Not recently… No, I had to go farther back. How far back was the question.

I hit a few keys and opened a search box. It would take days to go through all my files, but this little bad boy would get it done in less than six hours since I was looking for something specific.

I typed in both names and sent it on its way.

Minimizing that, I pulled up my design program and started to painstakingly plot the layout of the human body. Over two hundred bones and I wanted everything to be to scale.

I was a perfectionist.


	7. Chapter 6

For the next forty-eight hours Millu didn't contact me. I talked with everyone in SUNSRISK HAHKG, managed all the updates and new systems Inu wanted done to the site and almost completed the skeleton.

Let's just say sleep had been my friend. To prove that, I was currently sitting back in my chair, munching on popcorn and watching the live action _Avatar the Last Airbender_ movie. Kamakiri was watching the same thing on his monitor.

"Dude if you were here I would start throwing popcorn at you. I'm bored." My foot began tapping the lip of my desk and I found myself watching that instead of the screen.

"Aw, I want popcorn."

"Too~ bad soo~ sad." I sang. "Eh, did you know, your foot looks _really_ cool when you tap your toes?" Then I giggled, holding my hand just in front of my mouth.

"You're not sleeping again are you?"

"How could you _tell_?" My voice dripped with sarcasm on the last word, my eyes seeking out my bare toes again.

"Didn't Inu tell you to go to bed before you get loopy again?"

"Thanks dad number two." I rubbed my eyes and shut off the movie. The colors were pretty but it was not holding my interest.

"Want to talk?"

"Talk 'bout what?"

"What's bugging you. You _always_ stop sleeping when something is bothering you."

Was it really that simple? I could always give it a whirl.

"Well…" I paused as I sorted my thoughts. "I think I found out who Mr. Mystery is."

"Woo-hoo! Congrats girl! So who's the mystery guy? Or is it a girl and that is why you're all depressed?" He teased, I could almost _hear_ the smile.

"Mr. Mystery stayed _Mr_. Mystery." I grumbled.

"So why the glum chum?"

"His real name… I think his real name is…" I gulped, suddenly feeling superstitious.

"Spit it out Kitsune!" Kamakiri begged.

"Zoldyck. Milluki Zoldyck."

Something came through the mic that was, well, I don't know _what_ it was.

"Kamakiri? Hey, are you okay?"

"If I say no will you say this is all a nightmare?"

"Not a nightmare, you are wide awake."

"H-how can you even _say_ that name?!"

"Believe me, I don't want to but I think it's true. Do you want to know the scariest part?" I pulled a lock of hair in front of my shoulder to braid it.

"Please! No more!"

"I think Illumi Zoldyck is in my class." I whispered, doubly afraid now that I have spoken two of their names.

Middle of the night, I live alone, I've _invited _an assassin into my home, and now I was repeatedly saying a name I swear is akin to 'Beetlejuice'.

"You. Are. Cursed. Sleep with one eye open. I know I will be." His fearful tone was not a comfort.

"Thanks man. At least you've got some distance between you, I'm… well, a lot of things. Tired? Not one of them."

"You can't stay awake forever."

"No, but I still have a good while before I drop from exhaustion." I heard him muffle a yawn.

"I don't. Stay alive."

"Meanie." I called as his mic disconnected. Only after the conversation was done did I see the message flashing on my laptop. I was the only one on chat, so that meant the message had to be from…

_**Kitsune.**_

_**-M**_

…**Yes?**

**-Kitsune**

_**Do you want to know who I am?**_

_**-M**_

Was this some kind of trick question? Or had he…?

I ran a quick check and found that there had been a bug implanted in my system. Nothing harmful but irritating.

**When did you hack my system?**

**-Kitsune**

_**Oh, you found it?**_

_**-M**_

** $$hole**

**-Kitsune**

_**I applaud your firewalls, they were quite a challenge. The bug won't be around for long, it was strictly for temporary use.**_

_**-M**_

**Why?**

**-Kitsune**

_**I was bored.**_

_**-M**_

He. Was. Bored?! I swear those three words gave me a permanent eye tick. One thing I loved was my system and he messed with it out of boredom?!

I was usually mild-mannered. Usually I was never overly serious while hacking. The last time I had gotten serious was when I had tried hacking into _his_ system.

And that was when I had not been prepared. One of my current projects had been modifying all the codes he had used on _me_ so they would turn back on _him_.

Time to test drive.

I pulled down the notebook I needed and copied the code with ease. Let us just see if he can deal with a little payback.

* * *

Over an hour later we were still going strong, but ever so slowly my eyes were drooping. Keeping up with Milluki was tough. He really was a master hacker.

I blinked my eyes closed for a second and came awake to my alerts beeping.

_**What's wrong? That was too easy.**_

_**-M**_

Grr! I bit down on my lip hard enough to draw blood and pounded away at the keyboard. How could I let myself slip up like that? Especially against someone like him.

_**Time to go Kitsune.**_

_**-M**_

He was gone. My shoulders slumped and I rested my head against my desk. That had taken a lot out of me. Now I felt like I really could sleep. I hadn't confirmed whether it really was a Zoldyck I was playing against, but know what? That was okay. He was a fun challenge.

I gave a big yawn before snuggling into the crook of my elbow. I was too tired to actually make my way to bed but I did remember to disconnect my mic before I slipped into sleep.

Weekends were awesome…


	8. Chapter 7

I opened the microwave door and pulled out the reheated soup. Not exactly appealing taste wise but it was something warm. This September weather had taken such a turn today.

I had awoken to the thinnest coating of frost on my window, bundled on the layers and rummaged through the cabinets to find this last can of soup. I had been nursing it all day, not looking forward to when I had to go out for more.

I blew on the ceramic mug, inhaling some of the steam. I was standing in my modern kitchen in the thickest pajama bottoms I had and wearing my pink hoodie I had bought freshman year of high school. My hair was pulled back into a sloppy bun and I was wearing my glasses.

I didn't wear them often because they made me look bookish, contacts were my preferred eyewear accessory. Until the headaches start, then I had to wear my glasses for a day or two.

Maybe I should book another optometrist appointment? Nah, I'll do that later.

I trudged my way to the study, mug in hand, when I heard the doorbell ring. I checked my wristwatch. Who could be here at like eight p.m?

And whoever it is, I thought while cringing, needs to lay off the button. They had wrung that dang bell twenty times or more already!

"I'm coming!" I shouted the instant they let up. Wrenching the front door open I was faced with Hisoka.

He was leaning casually against the doorframe, arms crossed over his chest, and he was wearing a suit. No tie, just a classic cut jacket and dress pants with a red shirt. What was throwing me for a loop was Illumi who stood next to him, also in a suit with a blue shirt, and hands in his pockets. His hair was long and down but he suddenly looked, well, masculine.

"Hey Tamika-chan." Hisoka pushed off the frame and peered into my face. I simply blinked. When it became apparent to him that I wasn't going to say anything he continued, still cheerful, "Illu-chan and I stopped by to give you the report since you never gave us your email or number."

Blink.

Blinkblink.

"What?" I questioned stupidly. He handed me a reasonably small stack of papers. The title on the top page simply read:

BONES FOUND ON ARCHEOLOGICAL DIGS

"It's the report from the project. We finished it early." I saw Illumi shrug. Then I finally clued in.

"Shit! I completely forgot about that." Light bulb went on in my head.

M…

Millu…

Milluki…

Zoldyck…

Illumi…

"See ya." Hisoka raised his hand in a peace symbol gesture as they began walking away.

"Hey Illumi?" I called, seizing a chance I had almost ignored. Damn my cowardly nature. Cyberspace is so much easier to handle. "What's your last name?"

I leaned against the now locked door. That had been pointless. Illumi had just ignored me, never even looking back. Hisoka had given more reaction; leaned back to give me a wink and raise a finger to his lips.

Secret? Illumi's last name was a secret? Do I take that to mean yes he was a Zoldyck or did he belong to another family? Was there another family with a son named Illumi? _And_ a son named Millu – or some variation?

I returned to my study and my now cold soup. Half the group seemed to be online but I didn't feel like talking to anybody. I tossed the stack of papers down and cracked my knuckles. Thanks to the unexpected visit I remembered the unfinished design still on my system.

Too much had been going on lately, school projects had kind of taken a back seat.

Tonight would be dedicated to all those forgotten projects.

Yeah, I am _not_ that dedicated. I will finish off the skeleton model and go from there.

* * *

Flipping through the report, purely out of curiosity, I saw the last page was blank. Perplexed, I unclipped it from the rest and turned it over. The back contained a hand written note that appeared to be both of their phone numbers.

I shook my head, but a small smile was forming. If I had to guess, from the _very_ little I knew about handwriting analysis, I think it had been Hisoka who wrote the note. It was messy, yet legible, which indicated an unorganized mind. Illumi didn't strike me as 'unorganized'.

Nor did he seem inclined to hand out his phone number because of a school project. This was totally Hisoka's doing.

Beyond all reasoning I pulled my mobile from my pocket and entered their numbers. It would be simple to delete them afterwards, this was just in case…

In case of what? There was no reason for me to call them. The model was finished, printed, and safely in a manila file folder – precisely where this report was going this instant. The completed project would be handed in a week early and then I would never have a reason to talk to them again.

I tapped a few keys on my computer.

"Hey Uma, you still on?"

""Unfortunately."

"What's wrong?"

"Been on the clock for two shifts, it's throwing off my whole sleep cycle."

"Rough."

"Uh-huh. What about you girl? What's up in your area of the world?"

"Crazy shit." I responded as I clicked open another program. If they had phone numbers, they had to be registered somewhere. That meant a _last name _would be on record. The remaining question was _where_.

"Kamakiri told me you may know Mr. Mystery's name."

"Yup." My eyes rolled across my screen.

"Care to share?"

"Yup."

"Gonna tell me?" Uma's voice came through the mic after a reasonably small pause.

"Yup." I popped the _p_ sound. I reached into my top left drawer and pulled out a stick of gum.

"Hey Kit?"

"Yup."

"Are you a trash eating slug who sleeps with cockroaches?"

"Yup."

"You're not listening."

"Yup." I watched with my hope slipping away as the trace program took longer and longer to find Illumi's number.

I didn't bother with Hisoka's. I held no interest in discovering his last name. With the way my luck was going right now, I would probably discover that Hisoka _also_ didn't own a last name. Which in a world with so many people was a shocking phenomenon.

"Do you also have a secret crush on Inu?"

"Yu- No! What? Why would you ask something like that Uma?!" The thought of crushing on a guy who I had never met in person was idiotic and ridiculous. Though… to be honest I was jealous of his skills.

Uma laughed as my mind reeled. Why did they all take enjoyment from my air headedness?

My computer beeped, bringing me out of my thoughts.

"Yes!" I jumped out of my seat, I was ecstatic! Something had finally gone right!

I skimmed the document which had popped up. It appeared to be the standard cell phone contract you sign each time you buy a new phone. And at the very bottom was the signature of a Mr. Illumi Zol-

"Fuck!" I collapsed to my knees, head smacking the desk, "OW!" and buried my head beneath my arms.

Uma had gone quiet.

"Kit? Did you have a nervous breakdown? 'Cause if you did I don't know the number for your local mental hospital so your usual suite can't be booked." I groaned at the lame crack.

"Not funny. And even that place wouldn't have the security needed to keep me alive." I mumbled, face still plastered against the wood. Maybe if I stayed like this long enough I would merge with the desk and then Illumi would never be able to find me.

"What happened?" Concern laced her voice, which softened in reaction to my own depressed tone.

"Monick."

"Repeat that? And maybe speak English this time around please."

I lifted my head so my voice wouldn't be muffled again.

"Zoldyck.

"Gonna need more."

"Illumi Zoldyck is in my class. He's my freaking _partner_ for a _project_! And I think his _brother_ is Mr. Mystery!" I slammed my head back down, wondering if maybe I was overreacting.

Uma let out a low whistle.

"You are screwed to the Earth's core."

Maybe I wasn't overreacting. I mean, what had I done to them?

I was in Illumi's class.

I dug up info for his brother.

I now knew Illumi's last name.

I hacked into his brother's computer.

Zoldycks killed anyone who wasn't of use to them.

Then what about Hisoka? Couldn't think about that right now, there were bigger fish to fry.

"I'm going to let you go Uma, get some sleep."

"Okay. Talk to me tomorrow or I'm going to assume the worst."

"Good night." I said with a little more force than I intended. I signed off before anything more could be said though.

**Need to talk. Zoldycks.**

**-Kitsune**

_**What do you want?**_

_**-M**_

**You Milluki Z?**

**-Kitsune**

_**And if I am?**_

_**-M**_

**Why did you seek me out? You got skills.**

**-Kitsune**

_**So do you.**_

_**-M**_

**Why?**

**-Kitsune**

_**I was bored. Thought a little competition would be nice entertainment.**_

_**-M**_

**Why /me/?**

**-Kitsune**

_**Your bio was intriguing.**_

_**-M**_

Could he be referring to my website bio? Each of us created one which listed our specialized skills. It also listed our code name and contact info. We didn't always work in teams, most of our pay came from individual contracts. And so my work with Milluki showed, it wasn't always legal.

**What happens now?**

**-Kistune**

_**The contract continues.**_

_**-M**_

Guess I didn't have a choice. Though it was a relief to hear that he had no plans of firing me.

* * *

"Cool." Hisoka said as I showed them the model. I thought it was well detailed and my pride swelled with the knowledge that they approved.

Of course Illumi's approval only came in the form of a faint nod, no change in expression.

Everything in my life seemed to have realigned. Milluki was still paying me for information. The group was chatting and joking, and sometimes getting into trouble with Inu.

The last couple of days had been refreshing. Normal. I had spent some time amping up my security too, especially on personal files. And the one thing I had come across was the info document I had created on the Zoldycks.

If I had found that sooner, I think life would have returned to what it was now, well, sooner.

"Nothing wrong with it, is there?" I questioned, frantically looking it over for the hundredth time.

"No, no, it's fine Tamika-chan." He patted my head, reminding me that he stood half a foot taller. Illumi was about his height, so it felt similar to having a couple of older brothers. Hisoka was the joke because he had broader shoulders, and Illumi was the academic genius because he was quiet.

"Stop that!" I reached up to shoo off his hand, he simply grinned as Illumi looked on.

"Alright everybody!" Professor Husain walked into the room and thumped his briefcase on his desk as he began to teach. The three of us took our seats to 'learn'.

I more or less spent the class reworking some codes that had not worked how I had wanted them too. I looked over at Hisoka and Illumi once in a while, and they hadn't changed either. Hisoka still played with Illumi's hair, much to his irritation.

It made me laugh. This would be a fun term. It was, after all, only the end of the first month of my first year of college.

As I was packing my things away, my hip bumped the desk, sending my pens to scatter across the floor. I sighed and bent to pick them up.

My favourite pink pen was held out to me and I looked up to see Illumi holding it. As I reached up to take it I smiled. And unlike the first time this had happened, I calmly said,

"Thank you."

"Let's go Illu-chan!" Hisoka called from the doorway. "Hey Tamika-chan, want a lift home?"

"Okay!" I slung my bag over my shoulder and grabbed my laptop bag as I ran to catch up to the other two.


	9. Bonus Chapter

I was leaning back in my chair, relaxing after another battle with Milluki. My skills had been improving greatly because of these matches. And it made me happy.

However, the match today hadn't lasted as long as normal. Which was a disappointment. Today was my twentieth birthday.

September First. Two days before another term at the local college began for me. This year I had taken every programming course they offered, including the one online.

Even though my match with Milluki hadn't lasted as long as I had wanted, I realized if it had lasted any longer I would be late.

Over the past year I had still retained my friendship with Hisoka and Illumi. Who also happened to be the two men who had invited me out to dinner. Okay, one invited me out and the other was told to come along.

I smiled as I got up to shower. If I knew Hisoka like I thought I did, dinner was going to be a high classed event. And ending with bar hopping 'til I vomit.

* * *

I was just about finished getting ready, blow drying my hair, when the doorbell rang.

And rang. And rang.

"Hisoka!" I shouted as I rushed to let him in. I pulled open the door to see Hisoka in a pair of black dress pants, white button up shirt, and an open gray vest. His red hair was spiked back as usual, with a smile on his lips.

I looked behind him to see Illumi dressed up in a gray pinstriped suit, closed with a single button. His black hair was hanging loose like always, I had never seen it pulled back.

I myself was dressed up more so than usual. My platinum blonde hair was pulled back in a clip, something I had done only a moment ago, with my blue bangs loose to frame my face. I was wearing a strapless black dress to my knees with a silver hem, as well as a silver ribbon tied just below my bust. My heels made my height just below theirs, as I was able to look into their eyes with only a slight tilt of my head upwards.

"Ready Tamika-chan?"

"Yup, let me grab my purse."

"We'll meet you in the car."

* * *

Hisoka placed his hand on my lower back and guided me to a table which already had one occupant.

He had slick black hair, was overweight, and was wearing a crisp white shirt. He was already eating the bread.

"Aniki! You're late." He said as Hisoka pulled out my chair. Apparently this guy was either related to Hisoka or Illumi.

"Tamika, meet Milluki. My younger brother." Illumi casually introduced us as he and Hisoka took the last two seats across from us.

"So _you're_ the genius hacker I've been playing with." I kept my thoughts about his looks to myself.

"Yes, I _am_ a genius." He took another bite of bread. "But you ain't half bad yourself."

The dinner conversation mainly centered around Milluki and I chatting about computers, as Illumi and Hisoka had their own conversations. I had never expected to meet Milluki. Even though I was friends with his brother, Milluki had always seemed more like an online friend than in in-person friend.

But the dinner was entertaining, a lot of fun. And it didn't end with bar hopping! My brain jumped for joy. Hisoka sober was creepy on occasion, Hisoka _drunk_ was 100% creepy all the time. I don't know how Illumi could hang out with him as much as he did. 'Course I still had my suspicions…

"So Milluki?" I asked just as dinner was officially finished. I had been astounded at his appetite. I wasn't sure how a normal man could eat so much.

"Huh?" He asked around a mouthful of triple chocolate cake with white chocolate drizzle.

"Why did you come tonight? Just for curiosities sake?"

"Oh, yeah. Here. For you. Happy birthday." He handed me a small white box with a pink bow on top.

A present? I gently lifted the lid to the latest, the greatest,

"Oh my god! This is _Field Sniper IV_! It's been sold out since its release date! How?!"

"Nothing is impossible for a genius of my level."

"Thank you!" I leaned over and kissed him quickly on the cheek. This was the most perfect gift I had ever received.

I saw the look Hisoka and Illumi exchanged over Milluki's flushing face. But I thought it made him look cute.

"Hey, what do you say to a tag team match tonight? I have a few friends who have been dying to go against you for _months_." I said, trying to get Milluki back into a relative comfort zone. I don't think he was used to going out much. Not a lot of hackers are considered 'social butterflies'.

"Hehe, sounds like fun."

"Game on then." I smiled at Milluki as Hisoka led me back to the car. Illumi was going home with his brother so I was finally allowed to ride shotgun.

The guys were going to be psyched to learn about this. At least those who were on, and the ones who weren't were going to be pissed after they found out.

Another small smile found its way onto my lips as I settled in for the ride home.


	10. Ending AN's

_A/N: And that concludes __**The Hacker's Zodiac**__! So please tell me what you think if you hadn't already ^,^ _

_Kitsune: You're still begging for those reviews?_

_A/N: *eagerly nods head*_

_Kitsune: Hey Milluki wanna hack Ria's account?_

_Milluki: Hehehe…_

_A/N: *freaks out* No! If you do that! _

_Kitsune: Chill. Fictional characters here._

_A/N: *suddenly stops freaking out* Brain, I hate you._

_Brain: *smacks skull*_

_A/N: Ouch! *rubs head*_

_Hisoka: Ria-chan is starting to lose it._

_A/N: I don't want to hear that from a pedophiliac clown._

_Hisoka: Who is based solely in your mind._

_A/N: *shuts up*_

_Kitsune: Hisoka, be nice to the poor girl. She's already under pressure from the summer coming to an end._

_Hisoka: But I'm her stress reliever. *creepy smile*_

_Kitsune: *hugs Ria*_

_A/N: Illumi help us!_

_Illumi: *blinks slowly*_

_A/N: Saying something is nicer than just standing there!_

_Illumi: *walks out the door*_

_A/N: *looks to Kit* Can I call him a smartass for that?_

_Kitsune: Um, yes?_

_Hisoka: *chuckles*_

_A/N: And I think this makes up for having no A/N's throughout the story. So till next time!_

_*everyone waves*_


End file.
